History

The Brothers of Holy Cross opened Saint Francis High School as an all-boys school in September 1955. The original teaching facility was a small frame building, renovated from a grammar school and named Grant Hall after Harry Grant, the first student to enroll. Other buildings included a former residence, Andre House, and some peripheral structures. The grounds were largely orchards. Four Brothers comprised the first-year faculty. The first principal was Brother Donatus Schmitz. He was soon replaced by Brother Fisher Iwasko, who remained several years and is considered the principal founder.

Soon afterwards, the Brothers of Holy Cross invested $210,000 of their own funds and $225,000 of borrowed funds to build Holy Cross Hall. The building contained eight classrooms, three science laboratories, and administrative offices, and was completed in December 1956.

In 1959, Raskob Memorial Gymnasium was built on land donated by Ira and Elise Higgins. By 1962, the student body had grown to 685. In 1972, Saint Francis merged with Holy Cross High School, necessitating additional facilities.

In 2012 the school made a $15,000 investment into the website Snap Inc.; it had taken money from the endowment fund.[4] This investment grew to $24 million by 2017.[5]

Academics

The graduation requirements include coursework in English, mathematics, social studies, science, foreign language, visual performing arts, physical education, and theology. With its emphasis on college preparation, Saint Francis also provides an honors and Advanced Placement program. In May 2015, the average AP scores for the 559 sophomores, juniors and seniors who took 1196 AP exams reflected that 90% scored 3 or higher and 41% scored 5.[6]

In 2015, 99.7% of graduates attended college, and 97% of graduates attended four-year institutions throughout the United States and abroad, both public and private, including the University of California system, the Big Ten, the Big East, the Ivy League, the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), the NESCAC, and the United States military academies.[7] The class of 2015 also included 149 members of the National Honor Society, 102 lifetime members of the California Scholarship Federation, and 19 students named National Merit finalists, more students than any other Catholic high school in California for the third year in a row.

Athletics

Saint Francis has more than a 50-year history of athletics. Most of the student-athletes play in the WCAL (Western Catholic Athletic League). As of June 2009, the school has accumulated 14[8] State Team Championships. The following sports are offered at Saint Francis:

Summer at Saint Francis

The summer programs serve 1st through 12th graders from around the San Francisco Bay Area. These academic and athletic classes and camps are arranged into five programs: High School, the Freshman Experience, Middle School, Advanced Sports Camps and Youth Sports Camps.[9] Yearly attendance is approximately 1,600 students. In 2015, the high school attendance was 419 students, 33% from Saint Francis High School, 17.5% from Monta Vista High School, and the rest from local and international schools. Of those high school students, approximately 75% take courses for credit, and the most popular among these is Geometry. The Freshman Experience is an orientation program in which admitted and enrolled incoming freshmen take classes on campus from Saint Francis teachers. Historically, over half of the freshman class has transitioned to Saint Francis through this program. Sports programs serve both Youth and Advanced athletes in a variety of sports.